Pat Neshek

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**Pat Neshek**
Major League Baseball debut
Minnesota Twins — No. 17
Relief pitcher
Bats: Switch	Throws: Right
July 7, 2006 for the Minnesota Twins
Selected MLB statistics (through 2006)
Win-loss	4-2
ERA	2.19
Strikeouts	53

Pat Neshek (born September 4, 1980 in Madison, Wisconsin) is a Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the Minnesota Twins. At the age of five, Neshek and his family moved to Brooklyn Park, Minnesota and he was a Twins fan as a child. His family held season tickets at the Metrodome for seven years. Neshek is a 1999 graduate of Park Center High School in Minnesota. At Park Center High School, he was named to the All-State team. At Butler University, Neshek was a three year letter winner and holds school records for strikeouts in a single-game (18 vs. Detroit, April 15, 2001), strikeouts in a single-season (118, 2001) and career (280) strikeout records. During the 2005 season, Pat led all minor league Twins players in saves.

Neshek was originally selected by Minnesota Twins in the 45th Round (1337th overall) of the 1999 amateur entry draft, but Neshek didn't sign and went onto Butler. Neshek was later drafted in the sixth round of the June 2002 amateur draft as the 182nd overall pick. He signed with the Twins that year and was assigned to the Twins Class A team. Neshek spent four years in the minor leagues, pitching 234.2 innings in 173 games. In those 234.2 innings, Neshek accumulated 280 strikeouts, a 16-12 record and an ERA of just 2.23.

In his major league debut, Neshek pitched two innings and allowed just one hit. On July 30, 2006, Neshek got his first career win against the Detroit Tigers after he only pitched ⅓ of an inning.

Neshek has a very unorthodox style of delivery that could best be described as something between side-arm and submarine. It has earned mention on SportsCenter as well as Baseball Tonight. Professional baseball scouts have had a divided opinion on the issue. Some were worried that this violent-looking delivery would lead to arm problems. Others considered the delivery to be an asset, as right-handed batters have a very difficult time seeing the ball. As of August 2006, Neshek has had great success in both the minor and major-leagues, racking up more than a strikeout per inning pitched. For background on Neshek's delivery, see the Trivia section below.

[edit] Trivia

Pat's favorite autograph is his signed baseball from Kirby Puckett that he got at a Brooklyn Park car dealership as a kid.
He is the webmaster of his own website/blog. (Link is below)
Neshek's delivery was created due to being struck in the forearm in high school by C.J. Woodrow (a Philadelphia Phillies farmhand). He then began to throw side arm and play shortstop due to his injury. When it healed, he couldn't change back to over the shoulder and his unique delivery stayed the way it is. He still has a lump in his forearm where he was struck with the ball.
Pat married his longtime girlfriend, Stephanee Finger, on December 30, 2006 in Las Vegas, Nevada.